GPS Team
Adaliz Diaz
GPS Spanish Training - Trainer
GPS en Español Panel
Bio coming
Aida Ruiz-Batiste
Spanish Training Team Coach
Aida, a Latina woman and mother of 2 children. She has spent 25 years working in the Human Service field. This work encompasses many areas of service, including postpartum. She held the first postpartum group for Latina woman at the Brightwood Health Center. Aida looks forward to her continued service.
Alejandra Zorrilla
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator in English and Spanish
Alejandra is a Bolivian born in the United States and is a seeker of truth and love who tries to walk this earth with compassion and an open heart. She has academic training in Social and Audiovisual Communication, and experience working in social networks, cinema, advertising, and NGOs. Alejandra feels very blessed to be able to be part of GPS and to be able to be at the service of others, from listening and containment. In her free time, she loves creating, drawing, spending time with loved ones, doing yoga, walking, and being in nature.
Alex Iles
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator
Open Support Group Backup Facilitator
Alex is a Life Coach supporting teen and young Parents, and parents of LGBTQ+ youth He has lived experience as a teen dad and parenting LGBTQ+ children as well as supporting teen and young parents. Alex understands that men and fathers need more support and more opportunities to speak vulnerably about their emotions and struggles and facilitates those supportive spaces.
Co-Founder
Annette Cycon
Co-Founder and Co-President
Annette has been a social worker, group facilitator and trainer for over 30 years. As the Founder and former Director of Training of MotherWoman, over 17 years, she developed programs and is well known as an advocate for mothers and a trainer in Perinatal Mood Disorders, particularly regarding the impact of structural social justice issues such as poverty, race and culture on maternal mental health. Annette has spearheaded GPS’s international program bringing GPS’s maternal mental health to program to Guatemala and other Spanish speaking communities.
Annette Cycon
Co-Founder and Co-President
Annette has been a social worker, group facilitator and trainer for over 30 years. As the Founder and former Director of Training of MotherWoman, over 17 years, she developed programs and is well known as an advocate for mothers and a trainer in Perinatal Mood Disorders, particularly regarding the impact of structural social justice issues such as poverty, race and culture on maternal mental health. Annette has spearheaded GPS’s international program bringing GPS’s maternal mental health to program to Guatemala and other Spanish speaking communities.
MASStrong Support Groups Facilitator in Spanish and GPS Support Group Facilitator - Spanish, Latinas
Annette Cycon
Co-Founder and Co-President
Annette has been a social worker, group facilitator and trainer for over 30 years. As the Founder and former Director of Training of MotherWoman, over 17 years, she developed programs and is well known as an advocate for mothers and a trainer in Perinatal Mood Disorders, particularly regarding the impact of structural social justice issues such as poverty, race and culture on maternal mental health. Annette has spearheaded GPS’s international program bringing GPS’s maternal mental health to program to Guatemala and other Spanish speaking communities.
Argelia Alcantar
MASStrong Support Groups Facilitator - English and Spanish
GPS Support Group Facilitator - Spanish, Latinas
Areglia is a mother of two children and has a B.A. in Psychology as well as many other certifications related to nurturing parenting and perinatal mood disorders. She loves working with and supporting her community. Argelia has worked as a community health worker in a perinatal program and as a parent coach for approximately 10 years. As a Doula, she works with parents, supporting them during their birth and post-partum journey. She recently started a Spanish mom’s support group after realizing the lack of resources for Latina mothers in her area.
Betty Doherty
Betty is a woman in long-term recovery and has held many positions in the field of recovery in MA since 1998. Betty is currently a Family Recovery Support Specialist with the First Steps Together Program working with moms and dads who have substance dependency on their recovery and parenting journey. Betty enjoys leading GPS Recovery groups for both men and women. She also serves as Board Chair for Self Esteem Boston, a program that helps women feel better about themselves from the inside out.
MASStrong Translation
Cherline Arnoux, MSW
MASStrong Translation
Cherline, is a proud graduate from Wheelock College with a Master’s in Social Work; currently working as a Behavioral Health Clinician for Boston Public Health Commission. Cherline is a co-creator of the Black Women in Motherhood Support Group and is currently working on a curriculum to serve black women in postpartum care within the city of Boston. She seeks to better serve her community by participating in the GPS Group Peer Support Facilitator Training as well as completing a certificate program with Simmons University focusing on Relational and Multi-Contextual Trauma.
Black Leaders Support Group Facilitator
Chris Leonard
Black Leaders Support Group Facilitator
Chris (she/her) is a skillful process facilitator who brings mindful awareness from her training as a Zen Shiatsu therapist into her work supporting workers and communities impacted by traumatic events and grief. She is based in Toronto, Ontario in Canada.
Crystal Gurney
GPS Training Team
Crystal took the GPS Training over 10 years ago, founded Kitsap HOPE Circle to serve perinatal parenting people in Washington state and has led over 700 groups. She is the GPS lead trainer in the ongoing GPS trainings offered by Perinatal Support Washington. She brings her compassion, humor and an innovative art-based approach to running groups to support people and communities in transition.
MASStrong GPS for Recovery Workforce Facilitator, GPS Open Group Facilitator, and
GPS Facilitator Training Coach
Dan Foley
GPS Training Team
Dan has worked in the Recovery workforce in Massachusetts providing peer support for 7 years, and leading programs for Men in recovery using his lived and professional experience.
GPS Training Team
Deborah Rodriguez
GPS Training Team
Bio Coming Soon
Project Support Specialist
Dima Aboukasm
Project Support Specialist
Dima is an Anthropology Student at Columbia University. She is studying the intersection of healthcare and social justice. Dima is working to help increase access to care through her studies and work with GPS.
MASStrong Spanish Support Group Leader and GPS Spanish Training Coach
Dolores Encinas
MASStrong Spanish Support Group Leader
GPS Spanish Training - Coach
Dolores was born in Mexico and has a deep commitment to her community. She started her professional career in 2004. Her passions are helping her community and assisting with its development. Dolores believes, “better informed people make better decisions.” Because of this belief, she became certified as a Community Health Worker. This role allows her to be a bridge between the community, agencies and resources. In May 2011, she was recognized by the city of Tucson and Pima County as a CHW serving her community.
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator in Spanish and English and
Latinas Support Group - backup Facilitator
Gladys Enciso
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator - Spanish and English Latinas Support Group - backup Facilitator
Gladys has more than 10 years of customer service experience in a multicultural and diversified environment. Working in the financial industry has allowed her to connect with clients in some of their most vulnerable moments. She truly enjoys being of service to others.
Heidi Ross
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator
Heidi is an Assistant Director of Social Work at a Medical Center in New York City, where she coordinates the Victim Services Program and supervises the Emergency Department and Outpatient social work teams. She has over 20 years of experience in the field and holds a BA in sociology from Smith College, and an MSW from NYU School of Social Work. Heidi has a New York State License for Clinical Social Work (LCSW) and manages various programs and grants related to trauma and sexual assault care. She co-facilitates annual volunteer training for Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Advocates and is involved in several inter-agency community groups including the Manhattan Sexual Assault Task Force.
MASStrong Support Group Program for Recovery Workforce Facilitator
Heidy Lopez
MASStrong Support Group Program for Recovery Workforce Facilitator
Heidy has been her family’s translator from a young age and through those experiences developed the skills to manage complex situations and provide support to her family. Her passion for helping families has propelled her to become a GPS facilitator where she can use her lived experiences to provide compassionate support and help immigrants and refugees to find their own resilience.
MASStrong Support English Group Leader
Hope Tripp
GPS-MASStrong Support Group Leader - English
Hope is an active leader in her 1199SEIU. She works with other union members during the bargaining sessions with their State. She is currently pursuing a Bachelors in Christian Therapeutic Counseling at Chesapeake Bible College. Hope is a GPS-MASStrong Support Group Leader for our English support group.
Recovery Support Group Facilitator and MASStrong Spanish Support Group Leader
Karimar Vargas
GSP Recovery Support Group Facilitator and MASStrong Support Group Leader - Spanish
Karimar, born and raised in Lajas, Puerto Rico. She collaborated in the opening of new programs for dual-diagnosis and co-occurring disorders. Once the programs were up and running, she assisted with the administration of those programs. Karimar recently obtained her Certification as a Trained Facilitator of GPS Group Peer Support and is currently working as a counselor/case manager for the Unity Place South-COERSS. As a Hispanic / Latino, Karimar can feel the challenge of language and access to resources that we face as a minority population and her passion is to be able to offer her knowledge, experience, and professionalism to marginalized populations.
Moms of Infants Support Group Facilitator
Karina Bales
GSP Moms of Infants
Support Group Facilitator
Karina is a Social Worker and former Industrial Engineer. Karina's passion for social work and career change can be traced back to working with the underserved population in São Paulo, Brazil, where she spent significant time working on with orphaned children and homeless senior citizens. Karina is currently working to obtain her Master's degree, and currently she works with newborns suffering from Abstinence Syndrome and their families. Karina is a mother of three girls and loves working and helping mothers in any stage of motherhood and a GPS Group Peer Support Facilitator for Moms of Infants Groups.
Khalil Saddiq
Black Leaders Support Group Facilitator
GPS Training Team
Khalil is a proud Marine Corps veteran and community volunteer, racial equity consultant and development specialist, and a community activist. He is the founder of 901 Consulting specializing in transforming organizational culture through a racial equity lens. Khalil is a co-facilitator for the GPS Black Leaders Groups and part of the GPS Training Team.
CEO and Co-Founder
Liz Friedman
Co-Founder and Co-President
Liz sits on the MA Commission on the Status of Women, is on the Advisory Boards of MA PPD Fund and It Takes A Village, and has been involved in successful campaigns to pass Massachusetts’ legislation including PPD, Paid Sick Time, Paid Family Leave, Equitable Disability Insurance and Pregnant Workers Fairness Act which she led to passage. As the Founder and former Director of Programming of MotherWoman, she spearheaded the development of the evidence base for GPS Support Groups, developed a public health initiative to ensure that perinatal mothers receive the mental health care they deserve in MA, and in 2010, received the Ted Women’s Award for her outstanding work on behalf of mothers.
GPS Spanish Training Coach
Lorena Verdugo
GPS-MASStrong Support Group Leader-Spanish
Originally born in Mendoza Argentina, raised in Tucson Arizona, Lorena is certified in Behavioral Health Services, Community Health Advisor, and Life Coach, and recently received her Bachelor’s in science behavioral health. Currently, she is the coordinator of the local “Ventanilla de Salud” and provides on-site assistance, and outreach to low-income and Hispanic migrant families unfamiliar with the US health system. Seasoned in her understanding of the value of outreach in the community, Lorena is articulate and able to provide a bridge between the Spanish and English-speaking communities and is someone who seeks to bring health to her community.
BSAS and MASStrong Support Group Leader - Spanish
Luisa Shamas
GPS-MASStrong Support Group Leader-Spanish
Recovery Support Group Facilitator
Luisa has spent the last ten years of her life studying the process of becoming a mother and how mental health might suffer changes in the process. She worked as a volunteer for PSI, Postpartum Support International, for eight years while obtaining her credentials as an educator specializing in leadership. Currently, Luisa assists the PSI Spanish Helpline and is a GPS facilitator. Her goal is to continue to work with people needing help in the mental health field.
Trainer, Coach, Support Group Facilitator
Madeline DelVicario
Trainer, Coach, and Support Group Facilitator
Madeline DelVicario works in the Jandon Center for Community Engagement at Smith College focusing on ethical, reciprocal, asset-based community engagement. She connects students, faculty, and staff with community members and organizations to collaborate on community-driven social change projects. This year, she continues to head the Refugee and Immigrant Support Initiative and support the Smith College Food Rescue Network. Madeline has a BA in Psychology, and an MA in Psychology. Currently, she is completing an MSW program. In 2020, Madeline participated in GPS facilitator training and began facilitating anti-racism groups.
Marcy Langrock
Project Manager
GPS Training Team
Marcy earned her M.B.A. and has worked as a project manager for high-tech companies, healthcare-focused organizations as well as various non-profits. She completed her GPS Certification in 2021 and began facilitating parent and caregiver support groups, focusing on supporting the autism community and disability justice work. While earning her certification, she facilitated groups for Loretta Ross and Loan Tran in their “Calling In” classes and for their anti-racism work. She continues to facilitate groups and create curriculum for other areas of need in her community.
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator - Spanish, Latinas
Maria (Irma) Lugo
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator - Spanish, Latinas
Maria is devoted to supporting members of her community. She has experience and expertise in helping victims of domestic violence against women, individuals in Rehabilitation, and people dealing with Codependencies. Maria also is trained in "The Grief Recovery Method".
Maria (Irma) Lugo
MASStrong Support Group Facilitator - Spanish, Latinas
Maria is devoted to supporting members of her community. She has experience and expertise in helping victims of domestic violence against women, individuals in Rehabilitation, and people dealing with Codependencies. Maria also is trained in "The Grief Recovery Method".
GPS Training team and Clinical Consultant
Meyleen Velasquez
GPS Training Team
Clinical Consultant
Meyleen is an immigrant Latinx psychotherapist specializing in perinatal and infant mental health. She is a social work doctoral student researching anti-racist and anti-oppressive mental health services. Her practice supports women and clinicians working from an anti-oppressive framework. Meyleen identified as a Brown person for most of her life until several years ago when Vitiligo changed how she navigates the world.
GPS Training Team
Mia Edidin
Black Leaders Support Group Facilitator
Michelle Hagues-Fullwood
Black Leaders Support Group Facilitator
Michelle has her master’s degree in Education in mental health counseling from the University of Miami. She is currently a Senior Programs Manager at the Children’s Services Council of Broward County overseeing funded programs in Family Strengthening and Maternal Health. She is trained in Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Nurturing Parenting, the Circle of Security, and the Group Peer Support (GPS) model.
Support Group Leader - Haitian Creole
Milka Exantus
GPS-MASStrong Support Group Leader - Haitian Creole
Milka has been a Healthcare Worker for several years and provides
advocacy and Peer Support to Healthcare workers at the United
Healthcare Workers United Union to people of Color and Haitian Creole
Speakers.
MASStrong Spanish Support Group and Latinas en Espanol Facilitator
Mireya Guizar Mendoza
MASStrong Spanish Support Group and Latinas en Espanol Facilitator
Mireya is a Community Health worker in the state of Washington. She is passionate about supporting BIPOC communities, specifically immigrants and refugees who speak Spanish. She also educates and leads pregnant mothers in support group settings to prevent postpartum depression and empower mothers to find the support they need.
Facilitator Coach And Support Group Facilitator
Norma Galvan
Participant Support Specialist
Norma has over 25 years of customer service experience. Along with her years of experience, she brings with her the ability to collaborate, and problem solve. Norma is bilingual and will play an integral part in supporting GPS' Spanish-speaking participants. In addition to her Participant Support role, Norma is working with our facilitator training in Espanol team.
Nallely Willis
Program Administrator
GPS Training Team
GPS en Español Lead Trainer
Nallely is an educator and peer counselor who is passionate about Latina/x perinatal health. As the Program Director at Heartsounds, she works with low-income moms to provide doula, lactation, and prenatal support at no-cost. She has led GPS Postpartum Mothers groups in Spanish for many years, serving primarily immigrant, refugee and undocumented women living precariously on the border between AZ and Mexico. Nallely is a member of the GPS Training Team, as well as lead trainer of GPS en Español.
Nzingha Thompson-Hall
MASStrong Support Group - English
Nzingha is a professionally trained diversity and inclusion facilitator and conducts presentations and workshops centering around unconscious bias, health literacy, and culturally competent sexual education. Her passions include youth empowerment, women's health, reproductive health equity, transformative justice, and Black liberation.
Omar Delgado
GPS Spanish Training - Coach
GPS en Español Panel
Omar, is a Program Director for the only Latino program at the Gándara Addiction Recovery Program in Springfield MA. He worked with the SUD population for over 16 years. One of Omar’s biggest passions is helping men in recovery.
MASStrong Spanish Support
Group Leader and GPS Support Group Facilitator for Latinas in Spanish
Rosi Vogel
MASStrong Spanish Support Group Leader and GPS Support Group Facilitator for Latinas in Spanish
Rosi was born and raised in Mexico City where she attended Universidad Anáhuac and obtained a degree in Business Administration. She has volunteered with many organizations that provide support to community members facing injustice, poverty, inequity, chronic illness, discrimination, and other challenges.
Moms of Infants Support Group Facilitator
Sarah Circelli
GPS Training Team
Sara works as a Family Resource Coordinator at an Early Intervention agency and leads a team focused on supporting transitions home for babies and their caregivers. As the mother of 3 children, she knows first-hand how isolating the journey into parenthood can be and is passionate about supporting the perinatal mental health of caregivers. Sara is a co-facilitator for the Postpartum group caregivers. Sara is a co-facilitator for the Postpartum Group
Recovery Support Group Facilitator
Sarah Ahern
GPS Recovery Support Group Facilitator
Sarah is a woman in long-term recovery, a peer recovery supervisor, and a GPS Group Peer Support facilitator living in Massachusetts. Being a person with lived experience in addiction and recovery has helped guide a deep understanding of trauma, multiple pathways, and a non-judgmental, trauma-informed approach to supporting others to find their own pathways to wellness.
GPS Training Team
Sarah Garcia
GPS Training Team
Sarah works at a high school as a social worker and has brought GPS to her work with teen parents and is implementing a school-wide GPS program. Sarah's areas of focus are homeless, foster, at-risk, youth of color and teen moms, as well as trauma-based yoga.
Sarah Kofke-Egger
Research and Policy Manager
Sarah Kofke-Egger
Research and Policy Manager
Sarah is a public health and public policy professional with a background in international affairs who has lived and worked overseas in Kenya, UAE, and Oman. Sarah began her work in peer support with MotherWoman 10 years ago as a graduate student, when she designed the first iteration of what has developed into GPS’s certification program. She is a trained MotherWoman and GPS group facilitator. As a birth and postpartum doula, Sarah implemented childbirth and postpartum support programming in Muscat, Oman in a system where such support was virtually non-existent. She has worked as a project manager for a multinational research project. She currently lives in Western MA with her husband and three children.
MASStrong Haitian Creole Support Group
Suze Madden
MASStrong Haitian Creole Support Group Leader
Suze is a mother, wife, Social Worker, Guidance Counselor, Therapist, and a Substance Abuse Counselor, presently working for Luk, Inc in Fitchburg, MA. She has worked with several populations, focusing on working with families and children. Suze is trained in and uses different support models to best serve the populations she works with.
Tessa Smith
Black Leaders Support Group Facilitator
GPS Training Team
Tessa is a community partner committed to health and racial equity, who works for the Yolo County Health and Human Services Agency in Woodland, California. Tessa holds positions at the state, regional, and local levels and is passionately committed to advocating for the rights and safety of Black Men. Most recently, Tessa has partnered with Loretta Ross in ending White Supremacy and addressing the calling out culture.
Black Leaders and Moms of Infants Support Group Facilitator and, GPS Training Team
Tyona Ezeilo
GPS Training Team
Tyona is a master’s level social worker who utilizes a compassionate, trauma informed, solutions focused, systems approach. She is a certified trainer for the Brazelton Institute. Tyona works with groups and parents to encourage healthy relationships, compassion, empathy, and self care.